Bali United are set to represent Indonesia in the 2023/24 AFC Champions League qualifiers after they had edged out PSM Makassar on penalties on last weekend’s AFC competitions qualification play-off second leg match at the Gelora BJ Habibie Stadium in Parepare.
With the AFC Champions League adopting an autumn-to-spring schedule for the 2023 season, champions of the last two Liga 1 Indonesia seasons – 2021/22 winners Bali United and 2022/23 winners PSM Makassar – played a two-legged play-off against one another to determine who will book their spot in the AFC Champions League qualifiers while the losers will take part in the 2023/24 AFC Cup qualifiers.
After a 1-1 stalemate at the Kapten I Wayan Dipta Stadium in June 6th’s first leg, the stage was set for the second leg at PSM’s Gelora BJ Habibie Stadium, whose pitch came into intense scrutiny due to it’s poor condition.
Nonetheless, a dramatic game of football unfolded in Parepare and despite the poor pitch conditions the two sides did their best to gain the edge over the other.
With the first half ending in a goalless stalemate, it was Bali United who broke the deadlock in the 52nd minute. A Ramdani Lestaluhu cross from the right was poorly-anticipated by PSM defender Erwin Gutawa, who inadvertently directed the ball into Reza Arya Pratama’s goal.
As Bali United prepared to celebrate their success in qualifying into the ACL, the Serdadu Tridatu‘s party was postponed in the 83rd minute after PSM drew level thanks to a superb screamer from substitute Rizky Eka Pratama.
With the scores level at 1-1 and the aggregate equally balanced at 2-2, the match goes into extra-time, which saw Bali United’s new goalkeeper Adilson Maringa being sent-off seven minutes into ET after committing a foul on PSM’s new striker Adilson Silva.
However, PSM failed to capitalize on the numerical advantage, which meant that the 1-1 scoreline and the 2-2 aggregate remained that way after 120 minutes.
In the ensuing penalty shootout, all five of Bali United’s takers -Ilija Spasojevic, Brwa Nouri, Ricky Fajrin, Haudi Abdillah and M. Rahmat – succeeded with their task, while PSM captain Wiljan Pluim fluffed his effort when his team needed it the most, sealing Bali United their ACL ticket.
In the upcoming AFC Champions League qualifiers, Bali United will travel to Hong Kong Premier League runners-up Lee Man FC, with the match to be played on August 15th. The winner of the tie will face-off against defending ACL champions Urawa Red Diamonds at the Saitama Stadium 2002 on August 22nd.
PSM, on the other hand, drop down to the AFC Cup qualifiers, joining the likes of Singaporean giants Tampines Rovers, Burmese titans Yangon United, and Cambodian aces Phnom Penh Crown.